The Atlanta Hawks head to Windy City to take on the Chicago Bulls in a battle of teams that are likely bound for the NBA Draft lottery.
The Atlanta Hawks were one of the perennial playoff teams in the Eastern Conference a couple of year back but after failing to breakthrough, they dismantled the team and embarked on a rebuild last season. Atlanta’s rebuild continued this season as they added rookie Trae Young to their fold. The Hawks’ rebuild is far from done but the team has made some strides this season and have shown their mettle with wins over playoff bound teams.
Young is one of the reasons for the Hawks to be hopeful. The diminutive guard is averaging 16.1 points and 7.2 assists per game this season but has scored 21 points per game in his last five outings. John Collins leads Atlanta with 18.8 points and 10.4 rebounds per game while Kent Bazemore is scoring 14.0 points and grabbing 4.0 rebounds.
The Hawks are 19th in the league in scoring at 109.7 points per game. Atlanta is ranked 9th in passing at 25.5 assists per game and they are also 12th in rebounding at 45.6 boards grabbed per outing. Defensively though, the Hawks are last in the NBA in scoring defense, allowing a league-worst 117.8 points per game.
The Chicago Bulls cannot be criticized for lack of effort. Their young guys have been playing their hearts out but despite that, the Bulls have struggled to get wins. Chicago was on a ten game losing streak when they got a big break and faced the even worse Cleveland Cavaliers in their last outing. The Bulls took advantage, won the game and now the losing streak is finally over. Now The Bulls need to build momentum moving forward.
Zach LaVine scored 25 points against the Cavs. LaVine is averaging 22.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game this season. Lauri Markkanen, back from the injured list, is putting up 17.0 points and 7.1 rebounds per game in his second season. Jabari Parker is also helping out with 14.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game while Kris Dunn leads the team in assists with 6.5 while also scoring 12.2 points per game.
The Bulls have the second lowest scoring average in the league at 101.1 points per game. Chicago is 27th in the entire NBA in both passing and rebounding at 21.6 dimes per contest and 41.7 boards per game. On defense, the Bulls give up an average of 111.1 points per game which is ranked 16th among 30 NBA teams.
The Hawks are 3-7 SU in their last 10 games played and Atlanta is 1-4 SU on the road over that period. The Bulls are a horrendous 1-9 SU in their last 10 games played. Chicago is 0-4 at home during that period. Head to head, these teams have split their last 10 meetings at 5-5 but the Bulls have won the last three overall meetings between these squads.
The Hawks have won only twice in their last five games but those wins came over the Philadelphia 76ers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Against the Sixers, John Collins scored 25 points in a 123-121 win in Philadelphia. Trae Young had 24 points as the Hawks upset the Thunder 142-26. Two high scoring wins over playoff teams in their last five games only points to Atlanta having a loaded offensive team that can keep pace with the best teams in the league. John Collins and Trae Young lead the Hawks offense but they have a balanced crew which has nine players averaging at least 9 points per game.
The Bulls are not short on gunslingers either. LaVine has recorded 30 20-points or more games this season while Markkanen has scored in double digits in 14 out of his last 15 games played. Aside from the two four other Bulls players are scoring in double digits. These are Jabari Parker, Bobby Portis, Kris Dunn and rookie Wendell Carter Jr. I’m expecting Chicago to go toe to toe with the Hawks but come short in the end.
The Bulls have won their last five games overall against the Hawks but it’s important to note that Chicago has won consecutive games just once this season. The Hawks are 6-19 SU on the road but the Bulls are equally awful at home at 5-17 SU. I don’t like both teams here but if forced to choose, I usually go with the home team. I’d like to make an exception here though as between these two struggling squads, Atlanta is playing better with wins over playoff teams in the Sixers and Thunder in their last five games. I’ll take the plus points and the underdogs here. I’m picking the Atlanta Hawks to beat the Chicago Bulls on 1/23/19.
Atlanta is 4-6 ATS in their last 10 games played and the Hawks are 2-3 ATS during that period. The Bulls meanwhile are 3-6-1 ATS in their last 10 games overall. Chicago is also 1-3 ATS in four road games during that stretch. Head to head, these teams have split their last 10 games at 5-5 ATS but Chicago is 3-0 ATS in the last three meetings.
Atlanta has bounced back nicely from big losses. The Hawks are 4-1 ATS in their last five games after a straight up loss of more than 10 points. Meanwhile, the Bulls have not played well at home at 5-17 SU on the season. Most recently, Chicago 1-4 ATS in their last five home games against teams with losing road records. They are also 0-4 ATS in their last four Wednesday games. These are two struggling teams but the Hawks are in better form as of late. Prediction: Hawks +2
The over and under are split 5-5 in the Hawks’ last 10 games played. The total has gone under in three out of the last five road games of the Hawks. The over is 7-3 in Chicago’s last 10 games played. The total has gone over in three out of the last four games played by the Bulls.
Both these team have not played good defense all-season long and with many young pseudo stars trying to prove their worth, this could easily be a shootout. The Hawks have hit the over in four out of their last five games while the Bulls have done so as well in seven of their last 10 games. Prediction: Over 221.5
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